| Abstract Detail
Mycological Section Stricker, Sara Marie [1], Hsiang, Tom [1]. Management of bentgrass cultivars for improved resistance to Fusarium patch under climate change. Microdochium nivale (Wollenw.) Samuels & Hallett is a common pathogen of turfgrasses and cereal crops in Europe and North America. If the atmospheric CO2 concentration level continues to increase at the current rate, it could reach more than 600 ppm before the end of the century, and consequently Canada may experience a temperature increase between 1.5 and 4°C within the next 50 years. This climate change has the potential to increase disease severity of turfgrass species in Canada and northern countries. To investigate the impact of warmer environments, 18 turfgrass cultivars of economic importance from Canada and Norway were grown in temperature-controlled growth chambers. For these initial tests, the plants were grown in capped glass vials (70 mm length x 21 mm diameter). The vials were filled with 6 g of dried rootzone sand mix (pH 8.0, composed of 80% sand and 20% peat), moistened with 1.0 ml of deionized water and then autoclaved. To each vial ~0.015 g of seed was added and then further moistened with 0.25 ml of sterile deionized water from a spray bottle. The vials were incubated under constant fluorescent light (50 µmol s-1 m-2) at ~23°C for 14 days. Cultivars were then inoculated with a mixture of isolates of Microdochium nivale (Wollenw.) and screened for naturally occurring resistance at 20°C and 10°C by rating percent yellowing and mycelial growth. Select cultivars are being tested at 20°C and 10°C, with the addition of resistance-activating compounds to see whether there are differential temperature effects on disease resistance. These results are being used to select cultivars for field tests in Canada and Scandinavia, as well as in atmosphere-controlled environments where CO2 levels are altered. In addition, genes and pathways involved in resistant cultivars of turfgrass are being investigated, as well as the genetic differences between North American and European varieties. We are learning how future climate conditions influence host-pathogen interactions and hence disease severity, and can use this information to manage turf disease using natural resistance and resistance activators.
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1 - University of Guelph, Environmental Sciences, Guelph, ON, N1G2W1, Canada
Keywords:
Turfgrass
resistance screening
Microdochium.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: 64
Location: Salon 1/The Shaw Conference Centre
Date: Wednesday, July 29th, 2015
Time: 10:15 AM
Number: 64001
Abstract ID:187
Candidate for Awards:CPS Best Student Presentation Awards |
